The British government has warned loyalist paramilitaries that an extended decommissioning amnesty will be cut short if they fail to co-operate.
Northern Ireland Secretary of State Shaun Woodward said if armed loyalist groups show no willingness to decommission their arsenal in the coming months then legislation that offers them effective immunity from prosecution for giving up their guns will end.
Mr Woodward had originally announced a 12-month extension to the current Decommissioning Order, which will come into effect next month. However, he has now pledged to annul that law after six months if loyalists fail to engage sufficiently with the International Independent Commission for Decommissioning (IICD).
The move follows pressure from the Northern Ireland Police Federation, which represents serving and retired officers in the region. It was unhappy with the decision to extend an amnesty that was first introduced in 1997.
While the IRA has put its arsenal out of use, groups such as the UDA and UVF remain armed despite being on ceasefire. Th Independent Monitoring Commission (IMC) has expressed concerns that some loyalists are now attempting to obtain more guns.
The renewed effort to persuade loyalists to disarm comes against the backdrop of an upsurge in violent activity by dissident republicans.
Police Federation chair Terry Spence said the governments had pandered to loyalists for long enough. “Both the Irish and British governments have, at various times over the past decade, been bluffed into renewing the legislation without seeing any reward for their patience,” he said.
Mr Spence said there was no appetite in the North for another extension to the amnesty. “Instead, the political and community consensus is that the so-called loyalist paramilitaries have had eleven years in which to complete, nevermind begin, decommissioning of weapons and munitions and that their stance is one of criminal defiance,” he said.
PA